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Friday, December 13, 2013

Facebook Status: Recognized But It's Complicated

Facebook
has granted Kosovo recognition as an independent country.This puts Facebook behind the United States, Canada,
and many other countries but ahead of Spain, Russia, Serbia and other
laggards.Of course, now Serbia and
Kosovo contest the meaning of this, with at least one Serb suggesting that “Tomorrow
they will say that the Smurfs and hobbits have recognized them.”Yet there is something to all of this.

To be honest, it makes me glad that I finished my
dissertation twenty years ago.I studied
why countries vary in their support of secessionist efforts, including giving
recognition.To do so today would now
mean tracking key internet outlets?Oy.Of course, this is not the
only case where computer companies have to deal with political disputes:
Macedonia or FYROM (Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.

Anyway, how can we make sense of this?Well, much of this comes down to the dynamics
of identification.One of the books that
changed the way I look at pretty much everything is Donald
Horowitz’s Ethnic Groups in Conflict and his discussion of the logic of
invidious comparison.The core of it is that one’s self-esteem
depends critically on the status of the groups to which one belongs.As these groups rise and fall, so does one’s
self-esteem, which can lead to jealousy, anger, hatred and all that other stuff
that Yoda warned us about.

Recognition is a competitive exercise in this context, as a
recognition of a group’s state-ness improves how members of the group view
themselves, and the relevant Other feels diminished by this recognition.So, Kosovars (Albanians) are thrilled to receive
recognition as it makes them feel better about themselves, their ethnic group
and their country.Serbs are upset
because any elevation of Kosovar identity diminishes their own since group self-esteem
is significantly shaped not by one’s absolute status but how one’s group
compares with others and especially the Other.

To be clear, recognition is more than about self-esteem and
identification.It means normal
relations can ensue.It is far easier to
develop trade agreements and apply international law and all that other stuff
in international relations with a “like” entity.States have all kinds of rules and procedures
for their relations with states.These
rules do not apply, and the standard operating procedures do not work the same
when dealing with non-states.So, Kosovo
craves recognition as it would provide much more normalcy in its relations with
the world.

In its fight to be recognized, Kosovo will take what it can
get.It might not be getting recognition
soon from the European Union, but it has now achieved recognition from one of
the most important actors in our world of social media.Facebook is not the only social media
network, but it is one of the biggest and it does connect with much of the
world, especially the richer parts.So,
its recognition has heaps of value for the self-esteem of Kosovars AND more, as
social media/networking are connected to the material world of trade,
investments and more.

While we often joke about networking being not-working, that
our time online is wasted in these virtual worlds—Facebook, Twitter, World of
Warcraft, whatever, the reality is that people often take their online
connections and build on them in the real world.Perhaps if enough Kosovars develop Facebook
friendships in Spain or in other recognition hold-outs, they might be able be
able to develop allies in those countries that will push for recognition.I am not saying that is a plan but perhaps an
aspiration.

Academics are just starting to try to figure out how this
virtual world of social media impact politics, so we cannot say that Facebook
recognition will lead to more states recognizing Kosovo.It certainly will not lead to less.For now, we can simply understand this as yet
another battle among Albanians and Serbsin their competitive self-esteem contest.And this is one that the Kosovars have
won.Serbia’s losing streak continues
even in the virtual world of social media.

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Stephen M. Saideman

Intro

Greetings! I am a political scientist, specializing in International Relations, my research and teaching focus on ethnic conflict and civil-military relations. I watch way too much TV, and I like movies as well so I tend to write about both and find IR stuff in pop culture. I rant alot about American politics and sometimes about Canadian politics. I like to take ideas I once learned a long time ago and apply them to whatever strikes my fancy.